World

Manchester City edges Manchester United in controversial derby amid VAR scrutiny

Erling Haaland's goal leads ten-man Manchester City to a contentious 1-0 victory over Manchester United, with referee body admitting an 'error of judgement' regarding the decision.

13 September 2026Tagblick Newsdesk

AI-generatedWritten by an AI system, editorially responsible — how we work

Archive photo: Manchester City edges Manchester United in controversial derby amid VAR scrutiny — Archive photoPhoto: Paolo Camera · Flickr · BY

In a closely contested Manchester derby on Sunday, Manchester City claimed a 1-0 victory over Manchester United at Old Trafford. The match was marked by two significant events: Phil Foden's red card in the first half and Erling Haaland's contentious goal, which was initially ruled offside before being overturned by VAR.

Foden was sent off in the 23rd minute for kicking United's captain Bruno Fernandes, making him the first Manchester City player to receive a red card in the derby since 2006. Following Foden's expulsion, City faced the challenging task of playing with ten men for the majority of the match.

Erling Haaland scored the deciding goal for Manchester City in the 60th minute, but the decision to allow his effort to stand sparked debate. Although initially disallowed for offside, VAR intervened, ruling that Enzo Fernández was not interfering with play as the cross came in from Josko Gvardiol.

In response to the controversy surrounding the goal, the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (Pro Ref) acknowledged that there was an 'error of judgement' by the officiating team. They confirmed that the decision to award Haaland's goal would be reviewed, having contacted Manchester United to inform them of the oversight.

Manchester United's manager, Michael Carrick, expressed his discontent with the goal's validation, describing the error as 'as obvious as it gets'. He stated his concern regarding the officiating decisions that impacted the outcome of the match.

As a result of this victory, Manchester City moved closer to the top of the Premier League standings, tied with Arsenal. The match concluded a dramatic day in English football, underscoring the impact that officiating decisions can have on competitive fixtures.

This item was written by an AI system on the basis of the headlines and short teasers of the independently operating newsrooms named below. We disclose this under Art. 50(4), second subparagraph, of Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 (AI Act). Before publication we check origin and verifiability — anything that appears in only one place is not published — as well as language, substance and legally sensitive content. No separate substantive review of each individual item by a natural person takes place; we therefore do not rely on the exemption in Art. 50(4), second subparagraph, of the AI Act. Editorial responsibility for this publication rests with the person named in the imprint (§ 18 Abs. 2 MStV). Please report errors to [email protected] — we will correct or remove the item. Full reports are available from the sources listed.